What Trap Card used by an important character in GX shows one of Yugi's and one of Kaiba's Monster's fighting? If you said "Triggered Summon", you were successfully able to Name that Card!

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A note before I start this chapter.

Aster is the star of this chapter. As you may guess, the Destiny Heroes appear in this chapter in a big way.

Most of the time, I am content to use TCG names. With the Destiny Heroes, it is not one of those times. I feel that these Monsters were downright insulted by the names that Upperdeck gave them once they hit stateside, some more than others.

Thus, this is a rare case where I will use original names, at least for Monsters. I hope this doesn't confuse anyone.

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"I am."

Those were my first thoughts when Joan ran the program that created me. More thoughts followed… Memories flooded into my head… Memories that I quickly learned had once belonged to a human named Aster Phoenix, a powerful Pro League duelist years ago, who commanded the legacy of the Destiny Heroes. I obtained his skills, his knowledge, and his personality.

But I gained a different purpose than the true Aster. That purpose was to fight in the rebellion against Daala, and free Xanadu from her grip. Ever since Joan handed me my deck, a replica of the one owned by Aster, I've done my best to live up to that purpose. Why? Because I know of no other purpose that I could fulfill. There's nothing for me outside of Xanadu… I couldn't even survive outside of it.

I know that I'm just an AI program, a form of artificial life whose body is made out of ones and zeroes. I don't dwell on it too much. The most I can hope for is to make a difference for the actual living creatures that dwell in Xanadu.

I have a chance to make a difference now. Joan's most recent recruits are in a crisis, and I have to help them out.

It's time for my Heroes to fly. DUEL.

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CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

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Fire and Water

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Darkspire.

Smoke and soot obscured the sky, emitted from hundreds of smokestacks from the dozens of factories around the edges of the city. Buildings of gothic design decorated with fearsome gargoyles lined the streets.

Hundred-foot-tall statues loomed over the streets, imposing monoliths that supported buildings and bridges, some facing twins to form sculpted arches. Some were male, others female, and most depicted classical depictions of deities. Rumors had spread that these statues were once a race of beings that Daala had defeated and turned to stone, but it was likely just a rumor that she herself had spread.

Following Aster, Yumi, Sam, and Erik drove down a main street. He motioned for them to stop.

"Aster, what's going on?" asked Yumi. "I thought Daala couldn't capture anyone who didn't lose."

Aster looked around to see if anyone was watching. Then he looked down an ally. He motioned for them to follow.

"Most of the time, she can't," he said, in an ominous voice. "When you defeated her in that duel, did she by, any chance say you were sentenced to die?"

Yumi stopped short.

"We…" she muttered. "We thought it was just a villainous rant…"

Aster sighed.

"You should have taken it seriously," he said. "Ren and Chelsea are in big, big trouble."

"Where are they?" yelled Yumi.

Aster gave a sad look.

"When Daala passes a death sentence," he said, "and the victim isn't someone who works for her, sometime later, the victim is snatched, always by two Monsters, usually flying ones.

"We've only been able to stop this once. When we did, it was clear that the would-be abductors were brainwashed. When we got them to snap out of it, they couldn't remember a trace about who did it to them.

"Clearly, those two Winged Beasts were taking them to see Daala's executioner. No-one who is taken by this being is ever seen again. Neither are the abductors."

"No…" mumbled Yumi, looking ready to cry.

"As for how she can do this," explained Aster, "the reason that Daala cannot kidnap someone who doesn't lose is because Joan used the holy power of the Higher Plane to alter the very laws of Xanadu. Joan's dictum holds Daala back just as much as the Law of Gravity holds things on the ground… Well, sort of.

"But we think that the executioner is a being that is so empowered by Chaos, that it can ignore and disregard any laws or axioms. They don't affect it, and it doesn't care.

"Exactly why it chooses to do what Daala tells it to, we have no clue… Something with that kind of power might be able to threaten Daala's rule. Clearly, Daala must have promised it something.

"There's only one pattern that we can discern about this… system. Daala never imposes a death sentence on an AI program. She only condemns living things. Up to now, this meant Duel Spirits. Folks like me in Joan's resistance, we've never been the victim of this. And contrary to what some people think, we're not immortal."

"Is there no hope?" asked Sam.

"Well, we believe that the executioner does duel its victims in order to kill them," continued Aster. "Maybe it does so as a sadistic means of fun, if nothing else. Time is of the essence. Since it's dealing with two victims, if this thing doesn't have an OTK strategy, we might be able to find them in time. Maybe. But we'll have to…"

Then there was a loud, terrible chime.

"There…" said Aster.

He turned, and pointed behind them towards the center of the city. Rising above the buildings was an enormous clock, bigger than any other building, but squat, with fiendish architecture.

"That's the Realm Lord's fortress," said Aster. "The Infernal Clock. It's hard to get into. The entrances are only accessible by air, and there are several defenses – Barrel Dragons, Blowback Dragons, Gatling Dragons, any Machine that's able to shoot… Most flying Monsters are shot down before they reach it."

"We'll get to it later," interrupted Erik. "What's the plan?"

Aster walked up to an iron door at the end of the alley.

"We ask for information at the local safe house," he said. "Someone might know something."

He knocked on the door once.

A slot opened, and two eyes peered out.

"What's the password?" growled a voice.

"Misairuzame," answered Aster.

The slot closed, and the door opened. A hulking, fiendish Beast-Warrior whose head resembled a crocodile with hair tied in a topknot, armor, and axe heads on his wristbands – a Rude Kaiser – stood aside, and let them by.

"Misairuzame?" asked Sam.

"The password is always a Monster that's hard to pronounce, and whose name doesn't come up in casual conversation," said Aster. "That's usually the case with a safe house."

Inside the door was a spacious bar. A skeletal Zombie with a sword slung to its back was at the bar itself, wiping it down with a rag. Sitting at tables and talking over drinks were several Duel Spirits. A Warrior Lady of the Wasteland was sharing a brew with a Bio-Mage, while a Hayabusa Knight was sipping wine with an Alligator's Sword. A Sasuke Samurai and a Sasuke Samurai #2 were at another table having drinks that looked like daiquiris (which was odd, as they didn't seem to have mouths). A Muse-A sat on a stool in the corner, playing a gentle tune on her harp.

"What is this place?" asked Sam, in wonder.

"We call it the Last Chance Bar," said Aster. "It's a place in Darkspire where rebels and Spirits loyal to the rebellion can meet in secrecy."

"Why is a Skull Servant the bartender?" asked Erik.

"Excuse me!" snapped the bartender, who had overheard. "I am not a Skull Servant, thank you very much! Last I checked, I was a 13th Grave!"

"Excuse him, Bones," chuckled Aster, going up to the bar, "he's new."

He turned to Erik.

"Duel Spirits just hate being mistaken for the wrong Monster."

"Indeed," said the Grave. "Incidentally, Aster, I managed to get that card you were looking for…"

It handed him a card.

"Great!" exclaimed Aster, looking at the Trap Card. "How'd you get it?"

"Trust me, you don't wanna know," muttered the Grave. "Just promise you'll be far away from me when you decide to use it. If I had skin, it would be crawling…"

"Any news about unusual activity in Darkspire?" asked Aster.

"Why don't you ask him?" asked the Grave.

It pointed to a table, where a Warrior was sitting alone, sipping from a mug of ale. The Warrior was easily recognizable – almost every duelist who used a Warrior Deck used at least one – often two – of his card.

"Marauding Captain?" said Yumi.

The four duelists walked up to his table.

"Captain," asked Aster, "what's going on? You don't come in here too often…"

"News is spreading," replied the Warrior. "Some are saying that General Freed is in Xanadu, and I'm anxious to see him again if it's the truth."

Aster just looked at him for a minute.

"I'll be sure to tell Joan," he said. "Anything else that's new?"

"Just the usual," replied the Captain. "The Realm Lord is building who knows what in his factories and recruiting more Machine Duelists."

"Sounds a lot like Nezbitt," said Sam. "He liked machines more than he liked people."

"Oh, Captain?" said Aster with a grin. "Thought I'd tell you… The Goblin of Greed has been sighted in Xanadu."

The Captain smirked.

"Well, if you see him," he replied, "tell him he has only one year left, then he has to pay up."

"I don't get it," said Erik.

"He and the Goblin of Greed made a wager a long time ago," explained Aster. "They each bet that they could appear on the art of more cards than the other. The Captain here is winning at last count, and the deadline is up next year."

Then they heard Rude Kaiser's voice from the entrance.

"Okay, okay!" he yelled, in a panicked voice. "I'll tell him!"

The huge Beast-Warrior rushed in.

"Uh, Aster…" he said. "There's a Hunter outside… He's looking for you…"

Aster sighed.

"Hey Bones," he said offhand. "You got any root beer? Let's have some root beer…"

"Aster, what's going on?" asked Yumi. "Hunter?"

"Daala and her governors can create special duelists who are programmed to hunt down specific targets," sighed Aster. "They call themselves Hunters, but they're more like assassins. Apparently, this one's after me."

"Well, uh…" muttered Sam. "Shouldn't we deal with him?"

"Eh, he'll refuse to duel anyone but me," said Aster. "He won't go away, and I'm not gonna make it easy for him.

"Don't worry, it's no problem. I was worried the first two or three times this happened, but after six times, it's gotten kinda repetitive.

"I'll just make him wait until he decides to…"

"Okay, okay! I'll tell him!" shouted the Rude Kaiser.

He rushed in again.

"Aster…" he said. "He says he knows where Ren and Chelsea are."

Aster loaded his deck into his Disk.

"THAT was what I was I waiting for," he said.

He walked out of the bar. Yumi, Sam, and Erik followed, and several Duel Spirits followed close behind. The Hunter was a frightening sight, clad head to toe in black armor that brought to mind several science fiction movies.

"Thought to keep me waiting?" he asked, in an amplified voice. "How rude of you."

"So you're the big, bad assassin that the Realm Lord sent," said Aster, putting his hand on his hip. "And you know where Ren and Chelsea are.

"Uhm, you realize that since you found this bar, I can't let you live, right?"

"You have to beat me first," said the Hunter. "If you do, I'll happily tell you where those two are. But you won't win…"

"Yeah, yeah," sighed Aster. "Right. I'd believe that more, if the last six of you goons hadn't said the same thing."

"Let me guess," said the Hunter. "Destiny is on your side."

Aster chuckled.

"I'm not like the real Aster in that regard," he replied. "I don't believe that destiny is carved in stone, if it even exists at all. You wanna duel?"

His Disk activated.

"Fine. I'll try to make this quick."

The Hunter gestured, and a scythe-like Disk extended from his left gauntlet.

"Game on!" they shouted.

(Aster: 8,000) - - - - - - - - - - (Hunter: 8,000)

"Be my guest," said Aster.

The Hunter made his first draw.

"I play Graceful Charity," he said, playing a Spell Card. "I'm sure everyone here knows how that works."

He drew three cards. He quickly discarded two cards from his hand.

"I'll toss two cards facedown, and that will end my turn."

In two flashes of light, two facedown cards appeared in front of him.

"No Monsters?" said Aster, with a laugh. "Are you nuts?"

The Hunter didn't say anything. Aster drew a card.

"I activate a Trap," said the Hunter, as one of his facedown cards lifted up. "Soul Resurrection. Now I get to bring a Normal Monster back from my Graveyard in Defense Mode. And I choose Battle Footballer."

In a burst of energy, a bulky android in a football jersey and helmet appeared, crouched, as if ready to receive a blitz. (1,000/2,100)

He's up to something, thought Aster, looking over his cards. He summoned it that way because he wanted me to know what it is for some reason…

But it's nothing I can't handle…

"I summon Destiny Hero Diamondguy," he said.

He played the card, and a huge diamond appeared on his side of the field. It burst, and a figure dressed in black with a cape, and diamonds protruding from all over his body appeared. (1,400/1,600)

"You know how Diamondguy works, right?" he continued. "He likes to do card tricks. I get to flip the top card on my deck, and if it's a Normal Spell, it goes to my Graveyard, where it activates on my next turn."

He took the top card from his deck and looked at it.

He held it forward. It was Destiny Draw.

"Well, what do you know? Lucky me."

He discarded it.

"We'll get to that later," he said, taking a card from his hand. "For now, I'm gonna break an old taboo about heroes using weapons. I Equip Diamondguy with Axe of Despair."

The large, ugly Axe appeared in Diamondguy's hand. His Attack Score rose to 2,400.

"Attack!" ordered Aster. "Destroy it!"

Diamondguy hurled the Axe, and Battle Footballer was blown to pieces.

"You activated my other Trap!" laughed the Hunter, as his other facedown card lifted. "It's called Broken Blocker. Since my blocker was broken, I get to summon two more in Defense Mode."

In two bursts of energy, two more Battle Footballers appeared. (1,000/2,100 x2)

"Fine!" sneered Aster. "Make your move!"

The Hunter drew a card.

"I sacrifice my two Monsters of Fire…" he said.

The two Battle Footballers vanished in plumes of flame.

"To bring out a Monster of Water! I summon White Night Dragon!"

A monstrous form loomed over the field. It looked like a huge Dragon, sculpted completely out of ice. A cold chill wafted over the whole area. (3,000/2,500)

"What in blazes?" gasped Sam.

"Attack his so-called Hero!" ordered the Hunter. "Death blizzard!"

White Night Dragon breathed a blast of super-intense cold from its jaws. Diamondguy was blown to pieces, and Aster was knocked over.

(A: 7,400) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 8,000)

"Aw," mocked the Hunter, "I hope you didn't get that nice suit of yours dirty."

"How the Hell did you get a copy of that card?!" demanded Aster. "The only one in existence was the one that Sartorious gave to Alexis, and when she came to her senses, she tore it up!"

"Oh, you should talk," growled the Hunter. "You're a copy of the real Aster Phoenix, and you have his cards, even though they were also supposed to be unique. Daala may not be able to create miracles like Joan can in her programs, but she's learning fast. Given enough time, she can indeed program a card that no duelist could obtain on Earth. Soon, she eventually might be able to create a whole deck of them.

"And it's your move. Don't forget, this creature is impervious to all Spells and Traps that target."

"Come on, Aster!" urged Erik. "Draw Devilguy!"

Devilguy's effect would work, thought Aster, but he'd only be a temporary solution. I gotta take that thing out with some more closure…

He drew a card. He looked over his hand.

"Since Diamondguy sent Destiny Draw to the Graveyard last turn," he explained, "it activates now. Normally, I'd have to toss a Destiny Hero to activate it, but his effect negates costs.

"So, I get to draw twice…"

He drew two cards. He looked at them.

"So, you like football, huh? I'm more of a fan of basketball, myself…"

He played a Spell Card.

"I play D-Spirit. Since I have no Destiny Heroes on the field, this corrects that situation, letting me Special Summon Destiny Hero Dunkguy."

A new Destiny Hero appeared, this one resembling a muscular basketball player, wearing jeans and no shirt. His hair was styled in dreadlocks, and his skin was even darker than most African-Americans. His eyes glowed with red light. He knelt in Defense Mode. (1,200/1,700)

"Now I activate his effect," continued Aster, as he discarded a card. "I'll toss Diskguy, and Dunkguy gets to slam dunk off 500 of your Life Points!"

Dunkguy put his hands together, and a glowing sphere appeared in them, He leapt up, and hurled it at the Hunter. The Hunter staggered back as it hit him.

"Next," said Aster, as another Spell Card appeared, "I play Over Destiny. I choose one Destiny Hero in my Graveyard, like Diamondguy, and then I get to Special Summon another one from it, whose Level is no higher than half the one I chose. So, I'll summon Diskguy."

In a burst of energy, another Hero appeared, with armor, a helmet, and two disks on his back, two on his hips, and one on each wrist. He knelt in Defense Mode. (300/300)

"When Diskguy is summoned from the Graveyard, I get to draw two cards."

He made two more draws.

"Are you quite done?" asked the Hunter.

"Not on your life," replied Aster. "I haven't Normal Summoned yet.

"I sacrifice Diskguy, to summon Destiny Hero Dashguy!"

With the roar of an engine, the armored, wheeled Hero appeared. (2,100/1,000)

"Now, by sacrificing Dunkguy, I can increase his Attack Score by 1,000!"

Dunkguy vanished into grains of light, and Dashguy rose to an Attack Score of 3,100.

"Attack his Dragon!" shouted Aster. "Des dash attack!"

The onlookers cheered as Dashguy sped across the field, leaving sparks in his wake. He took a swipe at the huge Dragon, and it was blown into shards of ice.

(A: 7,400) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 7,400)

"So much for that," said Aster, as the Hero knelt and shielded himself. "Dashguy moves to Defense Mode… I toss two cards facedown, and then play the Field Spell, Clock Tower Prison."

He played three cards. Two facedown cards appeared, and then the whole terrain changed. They had been transported to the courtyard of a large structure with a huge, dark clock tower overhead, its hands at noon. At loud chime rang out.

"Big Ben?" chuckled the Hunter. "Big deal."

"Actually, pal," said Aster, "the proper name for the clock tower that this card was based on is simply the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster. 'Big Ben' is actually the name of the main bell at the top of the tower. Not many people know that."

"Aster is kicking some serious A," said Erik.

"Careful," warned Sam. "Don't jinx it."

"My move!" snarled the Hunter, drawing a card.

"Don't forget," said Aster, "during each of your turns, my clock moves ahead three hours."

The hands of Clock Tower Prison started to turn, moving to three o'clock.

"And I think I'll activate one of my Trap Cards. Go, Sixth Sense!"

One of his facedown cards lifted.

"Figures," mumbled the Hunter. "What better card for a bunch of Monsters who think they can control Fate?"

"I know they can't," said Aster, "but I guess I can't stay away from certain motifs.

"You know how this works. I name two numbers, and then a die is rolled. If I get one of those numbers, I get to draw that many cards. Any other number, and I lose that many cards from my deck.

"I'd be pretty dumb to name any numbers except five and six, so that's what I'll name."

A large dice appeared in the air. It spun, and rolled on the ground.

Everyone watching cheered as it came up a five. Aster quickly drew five cards.

"Whatever," snarled the Hunter. "I summon Hydrogeddon!"

A burst of water shot up in front of him, and a bulky, four-legged Dinosaur that seemed to be made of boiling, bubbling mud appeared. (1,600/1,000)

"Destroy his Dashguy!" he ordered. "Hydro breath!"

The Dinosaur shot a blast of liquid from its jaws, and Dashguy exploded into metal scrap.

"Activate… Destiny Signal!" shouted Aster.

His other facedown card lifted up, and a spotlight shot into the dark sky, with the letter D in the center.

"This lets me Special Summon a Destiny Hero up to Level Four when one of my Monsters is destroyed," he said. "So I'll summon Defendguy. Since his name isn't Attackguy, I'll summon him in Defense Mode."

A new Monster appeared, this one resembling a bulky statue made out of cinderblock, almost as wide as it was tall. The only indication of life was an opening where the face would be, covered by a wire grill. It knelt and crossed its arms. (100/2,700)

"I activate Hydrogeddon's effect," exclaimed the Hunter. "Since it destroyed your Monster, I get to summon another."

In another explosion of water, another Hydrogeddon appeared. (1,600/1,000)

"And I end my turn."

Aster drew a card. He looked over the seven cards in his hand.

"I toss two more cards facedown," he said, "and then I summon Destiny Hero Divineguy."

Two more facedown cards appeared. Then another Destiny Hero materialized; a masked, armored Hero with a huge, metal discus on his back. (1,600/1,400)

"That's all for my turn."

If he attacks with something slightly stronger, I'll trigger my Trap, he thought. If he summons the big guy… Well, I'll go to plan B.

"My move," said the Hunter. "And thanks to your Defendguy, I get to draw an extra card."

He made two draws.

"And my clock keeps ticking away," said Aster, as Clock Tower Prison moved to six o'clock.

"Doesn't matter!" laughed the Hunter. "I just drew something that will stop your clock!

"But before I use it, I summon Oxygeddon!"

He played a card, and a large, flying Dinosaur made of green gasses appeared. (1,800/800)

"Now, a powerful Spell Card called Bonding H2O! I'll combine two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. Isn't chemistry exciting?"

The three Dinosaurs vanished.

"I summon Water Dragon!"

In a huge explosion of water, a giant Sea Serpent made completely out of water appeared, looming over Aster's Destiny Heroes. (2,800/2,600)

"Fate seems to be on my side now," laughed the Hunter. "My Water Dragon is rainin' pain!

"Attack his Divineguy! Aqua punisher!"

A blast of water shot at the Divineguy, and he was washed away. Aster shielded himself from the impact.

(A: 6,200) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 7,400)

"Enough Water for now," said the Hunter. "Time to use more Fire, and burn this Clock Tower to the ground. I play Burning Land!"

The sky turned red, and a meteor fell from the heavens. Clock Tower Prison exploded, and the remains burst into flames. The Duel Spirits watching screamed and ran for cover.

"Well," chuckled the Hunter. "That was… HUH?"

Standing in front of Aster was a new Warrior, one that stood ten feet tall. He was bare-chested with huge muscles. Broken chains were on his arms and legs, and his face was concealed behind a mask made of iron bars. He let out a roar that seemed to shake the whole city.

"Whoa, whoa!" shouted the Warrior Lady of the Wasteland. "I thought Aster killed the big, scary Monster three turns ago!"

"Where did he come from?" demanded the Hunter.

"The instant you played Burning Land," said Aster, "I activated my Trap Card, Eternal Dread! It fast-forwarded my Clock Tower right to the witching hour. And when my Prison is destroyed when both hands are on twelve, I get to spring its inmate, Destiny Hero Dreadguy.

"Now his effect activates, letting me summon two Destiny Heroes from my Graveyard."

Dashguy (2,100/1,000) and Diskguy (300/300) appeared on the field.

"Thanks to Diskguy, I get to draw two cards again."

He made two draws.

"You could be decked out at this rate," said the Hunter.

"And as for Dreadguy himself," continued Aster, "we take the Attack Scores of all other Destiny Heroes on the field, add them together, and bingo! That's Dreadguy."

Dreadguy glowed with energy. (2,500/2,500)

"You know," snarled the Hunter, "you're really starting to annoy me…"

"That's what all the other Hunters who came after me said," said Aster. "By the way, I'm gonna use one of the cards I just drew… My D.D. Crow. I don't want to see your White Night Dragon again, after all."

He discarded one of the two cards, and the card fell out of the Hunter's discard slot.

"It's still your move, by the way."

"Then I'm ending it," replied the Hunter. "Don't forget, Burning Land is a Continuous Spell, and it costs us each 500 Life Points at the start of our turns."

Aster drew a card. He cringed as a fiery aura surrounded him.

"Hey, Bones!" he called to the crowd. "I got it! I got the card you gave me!"

"Then I'm going back inside," muttered the Zombie, turning around.

"Get back here, you coward," said Marauding Captain, grabbing him.

"I'll save it for later," he chuckled, adding it to his hand. "For now, I sacrifice Diskguy, to summon Destiny Hero Doubleguy!"

Diskguy vanished, and a mysterious-looking figure appeared. He was dressed in an overcoat, gloves, and a fedora, with a scarf over the lower half of his face. The only part of his body that showed was his eyes, which were glowing white. He held a fancy cane in his hands. (1,000/1,000)

"Man…" said Erik. "I'd hate to meet that guy on a dark street…"

"Since my lineup just changed," said Aster, "so do Dreadguy's scores."

Dreadguy glowed again, his stats changing to (3,200/3,200)

"Dreadguy…" shouted Aster, "splatter his Water Dragon with dreadnaught smash!"

Dreadguy roared, and threw a savage punch at Water Dragon. It exploded into a burst of Water.

"I activate its effect!" shouted the Hunter. "I get to Special Summon Oxygeddon and both Hydrogeddons from my Graveyard!"

Oxygeddon (1,800/800) and both Hydrogeddons (1,600/1,000) appeared in Defense Mode.

"Dashguy, destroy Oxygeddon!" shouted Aster.

Dashguy sped towards the Dinosaur and slashed at it, causing it to dissipate.

"Now, I activate a Trap," said Aster, as his facedown card lifted up. "D-Chain. And I'll hardwire it to Doubleguy."

A long chain with a grappling hook on the end appeared in Doubleguy's hands. His Attack Score rose to 1,500.

"Attack one of the Hydrogeddons!" urged Aster.

Doubleguy twirled the grapple above his head, and threw it at the Dinosaur, and it shattered into shards. The Hunter held his chest in pain.

"Now you lose 500 Life Points," said Aster. "And true to his name, Doubleguy gets a double attack!"

Doubleguy grew and mutated, turning into a bestial creature clad in ragged clothing. He hurled the D-Chain, and the second Hydrogeddon exploded. The Hunter cringed again.

Aster threw a card into his Disk.

"Now I play… D-Acceleration!" he shouted. "This lets Doubleguy do a triple-take and attack once again, so long as I have him ditch the D-Chain and cut his Attack Score in half."

Doubleguy turned back to his normal form. The D-Chain shattered, and his Attack Score fell to 500. He leapt up, and kicked the Hunter directly.

Dashguy moved into Defense Mode.

"I'll play a facedown," said Aster, "and end my turn."

A facedown card appeared.

(A: 5,700) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 5,500)

The Hunter glared at him.

He drew two times. The same flaming aura surrounded him.

"Heh, heh…" he said. "Time to show you the true apex of my deck, Aster… The perfect combination of two opposing forces… The combination of Fire and Water…

"I remove from play one Fire Monster and two Water Monsters…"

The two Hydrogeddons and a Battle Footballer appeared behind him, and then vanished into grains of light.

"What is this?" asked Sam. "Is this a summoning?"

"Wait…" said Yumi. "I've heard of a Monster that can be summoned like this…"

"I summon Frost and Flame Dragon!" shouted the Hunter.

The Monster that appeared was indeed a Dragon, serpentine in shape, with two heads – one orange with an aura of flame, and one white with an aura of frost. (2,300/2,000)

"Now," he said, "by tossing one card, I can destroy one Monster on the field."

He discarded an Aqua Madoor. The Fire head breathed flames on Dashguy, turning his metal armor red hot. Then the Frost head blasted a cone of cold, and Dashguy exploded from the sudden change of temperature.

"I still have its normal attack!" he shouted. "Attack Doubleguy!"

The Dragon breathed both fire and ice, and Doubleguy exploded into pixels. Aster shielded himself again.

"Look at your Dreadguy now," laughed the Hunter. "He's nearly powerless!"

It was true. Dreadguy had fallen to only (100/100).

"I'll place a Monster in Defense Mode, and end my turn."

A facedown Monster appeared.

(A: 4,400) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 5,000)

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In Daala's palace, Skull Knight was looking at a small, violet orb.

It was actually a Spellcaster's version of a CD. Such Duel Spirits used them to record and play music.

He sighed, and placed it in a small tripod. It lit up, as music started to play.

I've been a mage forever…

And I wrote the very first spell…

I put the powders and the potions together,

I am Magic, and I write the spells.

I write the spells that turn men into kings…

I write the spells that summon powerful things…

I write the spells that brings the princess home…

I write the spells, I write the spells.

I can reach deep with in you…

I can see the power in your soul…

I can use magic to hide from your eyes,

I can even change lead into gold.

I write the spells that tell you future things…

I write the spells for magic swords and rings…

I write the spells that keep you safe at night…

I write the spells, I write the spells.

"What the heck is that?" asked a voice.

Skull Knight turned around, and saw that Daala had entered.

"Oh…" he muttered. "My, uhm, my protégé says it's a very popular song in her dimension. Uhm, I'll turn it off if it bothers you."

Daala sighed.

"I'm just nervous," she said. "Ren and Chelsea will be facing you-know-who shortly. The outcome will either end things very much in our favor, or with us with a big setback.

"It would help if she didn't insist on using an Anarchist Disk."

"She's done good work so far, milady," said Skull Knight. "We'll have to hope for the best."

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Aster quickly drew a card. He squirmed a little as the fiery aura surrounded him again.

He looked at the card he had drawn. It was one of his most powerful Monsters.

"Time to get serious," he said. "Since Doubleguy was destroyed last turn, I get a bonus… Two Doubleguy Tokens."

Two figures that looked just like Doubleguy appeared, kneeling in Defense Mode. (1,000/1,000 x2)

"Now I play… Doctor-D," he continued, as a Spell Card appeared. "This lets me remove a Destiny Hero in my Graveyard from play, to summon another one from it. So, since I can't Special Summon Divineguy anyway, I'll remove him from play, and summon Diamondguy."

A card slipped out of his discard slot, and he pocketed it. Diamondguy appeared again. (1,400/1,600)

"Next, I use Diamondguy's effect. You remember this, right?"

He looked at the top card on his deck.

He showed it to the Hunter. It was The Warrior Returning Alive. He discarded it.

"Now, I sacrifice Diamondguy and my two Tokens…"

Diamondguy and the two Doubleguy Tokens vanished.

Can it be? thought Sam. Can it be?

"Presenting…" announced Aster, "Destiny Hero Dogmaguy!"

A large, dark shape appeared over the field, one with large wings. It was a dark Hero in black, one with armor and a horned helmet. His demonic wings reached a fifteen-foot span. (3,400/2,400)

"Nuts," muttered Sam.

"What nuts?" said Yumi. "That's a great Monster! He's even stronger than your dad's Dragon!"

"Granted," said Sam, "but I was kinda hoping he was summoning Bloo-D."

"Don't make me laugh!" shouted the Hunter. "There is no way that even Joan could have duplicated a card as powerful as Bloo-D."

"Oh?" asked Aster. "Really? Are you sure about that?"

The Hunter stopped short.

"Huh?" he said. "What do you mean?"

"How do you know for sure that you aren't wrong?" asked Aster. "Maybe Destiny Hero Bloo-D is indeed lurking deep in my deck, and I simply haven't drawn him yet."

The Hunter looked at him.

"None…" he muttered. "None of Daala's men ever reported seeing you use it…"

"Oh?" said Aster with a grin. "Maybe that's because every one of Daala's men who witnessed me using him were obliterated! Consider that!"

There was a long pause. Aster chuckled.

"I'm not going to tell you one way or another," he said with a smirk. "I don't have him in my hand right now, that's all I'll say. If you want to find out for sure, assuming I don't eventually manage to draw him, you'll have to win this duel and take my deck.

"For now, Dreadguy is far from powerless."

Dreadguy and Dogmaguy nodded to each other. Dreadguy glowed, and rose to (3,500/3,500)

"Dreadguy, squash his Dragon!"

Dreadguy lunged forward, and flattened Frost and Flame Dragon with one smash.

"ERGH!" shouted the Hunter.

"Dogmaguy, destroy his last Monster!" shouted Aster. "Des chronicle!"

Dogmaguy gestured, and two sword blades sprouted from his wrists. He flew at the facedown card, and fiendish-looking treasure chest appeared. With one swipe, it was cut in half.

"That was my Dark Mimic LV1," said the Hunter. "Now I get to draw once."

He made a draw.

"I end my turn," said Aster, with a grin.

(A: 3,900) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 3,800)

The Hunter drew two cards. He cringed again as the flaming aura surrounded him.

Then he screamed as a blade of energy shot from Dogmaguy, striking him.

"You know Dogmaguy's ability, right?" asked Aster. "On the round after he's summoned, he cuts your Life Points in half."

(A: 3,900) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 1,650)

"I know what you're thinking right now," said Aster. "You're thinking, 'Why the Hell did I ever play that stupid Burning Land card?', right?"

"Maybe, maybe not…" said the Hunter. "There are advantages to having low Life Points. I play Pot of Greed."

He played the card, and quickly drew twice more.

"Now I play Monster Reborn!" he shouted, playing a card. "And I'll revive a Monster from your Graveyard!."

The ankh appeared, and Diskguy appeared on his side of the field in Defense Mode. (300/300)

"Now I get to draw two more cards," he said, drawing twice.

"And I'm gonna finish you off! I just drew a second Frost and Flame Dragon.

"Now, I remove three Monsters from play again to summon it."

The second Battle Footballer, Aqua Madoor, and Water Dragon appeared behind him, and vanished into grains of light. Frost and Flame Dragon appeared again. (2,300/2,000)

"Now, I'll discard one card, so that he can do my dirty work for me again."

He tossed a Masked Dragon, and the Dragon breathed its twin streams at Dogmaguy. The Dark Hero screamed, and then burst into pixels.

"NO!" shouted Aster. "You dirty…"

Dreadguy groaned, and fell back to (100/100)

"I'm not done," said the Hunter. "I'll sacrifice your Diskguy…"

Diskguy vanished into grains of light.

"To summon… Twinheaded Beast!"

A bonfire of flame erupted on his side of the field, and frightening creature stepped out of it. It looked like a flaming centaur, with four legs, flaming claws on its upper body, and two heads with manes of fire. (1,700/1,900)

"It may not be very strong for a Level Six Monster, but like your Doubleguy, it can attack twice in one turn.

"And I'm going to make it stronger. I play the Equip Spell Megamorph. Since my Life Points are lower than yours, this doubles my Beast's Attack Score. Like I said, sometimes having less Life Points can be advantageous."

Twinheaded Beast burned with raging flames, and grew to twice its size. (3,400/1,900)

"Frost and Flame Dragon, attack his Dreadguy!" he shouted.

Frost and Flame Dragon shot its twin blasts at Dreadguy…

"Go, Trap Card!" shouted Aster. "D-Shield!"

His Trap Card flipped up. Dreadguy quickly knelt in Defense Mode, and the blasts just bounced off of him.

"D-Shield moves my Hero to Defense Mode, and keeps him from being destroyed in battle," said Aster.

The Hunter growled. He placed two cards in his Disk, and two facedown cards appeared.

"Your move," he said.

"I don't get it," said Sam. "He could have destroyed Defendguy."

"True," said Yumi, "but doing so wouldn't have hurt Aster. On the other hand, by keeping Defendguy around, he gets an extra draw on his turn."

"Maybe so," said Sam, "but it may have been a grave error.

"Aster used Diamondguy's effect to send The Warrior Returning Alive to his Graveyard last turn, remember? He can use that to get Dogmaguy back.

"If he draws a Monster that he can Normal Summon, he'll meet the requirements to summon Dogmaguy again. Then he can destroy Frost and Flame Dragon, costing the Hunter 1,100 Life Points.

"Then on the Hunter's turn, he'll lose 500 more Life Points from Burning Land. Then Dogmaguy's effect will kick in…"

"Leaving him with only 25 Life Points left and facing a Monster that even that double-strength Beast can't beat," said Erik. "Aster will finish him off for sure."

The Hunter just glared at him.

Aster closed his eyes.

He slowly drew a card. Then he cringed again, as Burning Land burned him.

"I activate a Trap Card," said the Hunter, as his facedown card lifted.

"DNA Transplant. Now I get to name an Attribute, and all Monsters on the field become that Attribute.

"I name Fire."

"What good will that do you?" asked Aster.

"Because I have another Trap Card," said the Hunter, as his second facedown card lifted. "It's called Elemental Absorber. I simply remove one Monster in my hand from play, and none of your Monsters with the same Attribute as the one I'm removing are allowed to attack.

"I'm removing this one – my Inferno, which is a Fire Monster."

He held up a card, and it vanished.

"No…" gasped Erik.

"If all of Aster's Monsters are Fire…" muttered Sam. "This guy has completely sealed off his attacks! Even if he does summon Dogmaguy…"

"He won't be attacking," said the Hunter, "and my Dragon will destroy him again next round, leaving you defenseless.

"So by all means, bring Dogmaguy back."

Aster looked at his opponent. Then he looked at the card he had drawn.

Hey… he thought.

He looked at the other card in his hand. The Trap Card that Bones had given him.

"I use Dashguy's other effect," said Aster. "Since he's in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon the Monster I just drew.

"I summon Destiny Hero Dark Angel!"

The Monster that appeared was indeed a Dark Angel. He had armor, and large, feathered wings. He didn't seem to have any weapon or any means of combat. (0/0)

"Dark Angel?" mused the Hunter. "Wait… Wait, I heard of that card… The real Aster's father made it so that Aster could defeat Bloo-D. Everyone assumed he put it away after he succeeded. So why would Joan bother making a copy for you?"

"You know," said Aster, "I wondered that myself when she first gave me my deck… She told me that I might find a use for it… You never know. She told me to keep it my side deck, and eventually something would come to me.

"And you know what? Something did come to me. And I have Bones to thank for helping me get the right card.

"But we'll get to that later. For now, the card that Diamondguy sent to my Graveyard last turn activates. The Warrior Returning Alive.

"But I don't think I'll recover Dogmaguy… I'll bring back someone else…"

Dashguy slipped out of his discard slot.

"I sacrifice Defendguy to summon him."

Defendguy vanished, and Dashguy appeared once again. (2,100/1,000)

"Dreadguy's Scores change again, but I think I'll keep him in Defense Mode for now."

Dreadguy changed to (2,100/2,100)

Huh? thought the Hunter. What good is Dashguy he if it can't attack?

"Now, I play a facedown," said Aster.

He played his last card, and a facedown card appeared.

"I'm ending my turn now. And that means Dark Angel's effect activates. You see, Dark Angel just hates to stay in one place for a long time. When I end my turn, he moves to your side of the field."

Dark Angel vanished, and reappeared on the Hunter's side of the field.

"WHAT?" shouted the Hunter. "I don't want him!"

"Tough," said Aster.

(A: 3,400) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 1,650)

Under his helmet, the Hunter frowned.

"I draw!" he shouted, drawing.

He cringed again, as he was burned by the Spell Card.

"I don't know what sort of crazy plan this is, Aster, but it won't work," he said.

"Now I'm getting rid of your last defensive Monster."

He discarded the card he just drew.

Frost and Flame Dragon breathed its twin streams, and Dreadguy shattered into shards.

He turned to the spectators.

"By the way, Yumi…" he said with a chuckle. "Ren and Chelsea are on the top of the Cathedral of Mechanicles."

He chuckled again.

"Too bad you don't know where that is. And these Duel Spirits don't know where it is either. It's hidden from all Duel Spirits except Machines. By the time you find one who's willing to give you directions, it will be far too late."

"You made a big mistake, pal!" laughed Aster. "Most Machines in this Realm are loyal to the Lord, but I've convinced a few of them to help me, and I know exactly where that place is!"

"Yeah, well…" said the Hunter, "can you draw them a map in the next fifteen seconds? That's how long you have before you lose.

"Frost and Flame Dragon… Attack Dashguy!"

Frost and Flame Dragon roared… Energy appeared in its jaws.

"Not so fast!" shouted Aster.

His Trap Card flipped up.

"I activate… Dark Spirit of the Silent!"

Two ghostly phantoms flew out of the card making an unearthly, ominous howl. The 13th Grave covered his eyes. One of them dove into Frost and Flame Dragon, and the other into Dark Angel.

"Huh?" gasped the Hunter. "What's going on?"

"Dark Spirit of the Silent halts your attack," said Aster, "and then forces another of your Monsters, of my choice, to attack.

"And I choose Dark Angel!"

Dark Angel formed a fighting stance and looked at Dashguy.

"But… But… That means…" gasped the Hunter.

"That's right," said Aster, with a sinister grin. "Dashguy has 2,100 Attack Points, while Dark Angel has zero. The outcome is… You lose."

Dark Angel flew at Dashguy. The stronger Destiny Hero made a slash with his claw, and the weaker one exploded. The Hunter screamed in pain.

(A: 3,400) - - - - - - - - - - (H: 0)

The Hunter fell to his knees.

"How could I have lost?" he moaned. "I… I prepared for everything…"

Aster shook his head.

"So did the first six Hunters who came after me before you," he said. "The Hunters who have bothered Jesse, Atticus, and all of Joan's top men have. But they all made the same mistake. They prepared for everything that our real counterparts could have done before their deaths in that plane crash so long ago.

"I'm not the real Aster. I'm what he would have been if he had survived, and become more experienced. I know how to use his cards in ways that no-one knows about. And I keep thinking up new ways. Unlike most computer programs, I can learn, I can think up ideas on my own. That's the whole idea behind AI.

"When the eighth Hunter programmed to take me out is created, and I'm certain there will be one, I guarantee I'll have a new trick by then. But he'll just make the same mistake all over again."

His Disk deactivated.

"So, the Cathedral of Mechanicles, huh? Thanks… We'd never have thought to look there."

"Curse you, Aster!" yelled the Hunter, as smoke started to rise from the seams in his armor. "You and your Heroes… You'll pay for…"

He didn't say anything else. His armor fell to the ground in pieces, burnt and smoking.

The Duel Spirits watching cheered. Aster ran towards Yumi and the others.

"Come on," he said. "Let's get there before it really is too late…"

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Meanwhile, in Domino, Sheena was working at the computers at Kaibaland while Nicholas and Olga watched.

She took a small diskette out of a drive.

"There," she said.

"What is it?" asked Nicholas.

"A virus program," explained Sheena. "Dr. Ting's notes helped me create it. It is the key to Daala's undoing.

"Here's what I have to do…"

She placed the diskette in a pouch on her belt.

"I have to go into Xanadu, where, in theory, this diskette will take the form of a Parasite Paraside card. Then I have to hunt down Daala, duel her, and win after I successfully use it.

"If that happens… Daala will be deleted. She'll disappear forever. This resistance that Ting spoke of will have no trouble taking over."

"Seems a chancy plan," said Olga. "You can't guarantee that you'll be able to draw the card. And even if you do, it might take a while for her to draw it."

"Yeah, but it was the best plan I could come up with," replied Sheena. "Fortunately, Parasite Paraside is an easy Monster to search for. I'll put Sangan and three copies of Gokipon in my side deck. And I'll also include three copies of Jade Insect Whistle to use once the Flip-Effect is activated."

She strapped her own Duel Disk onto her arm. She punched in the controls for the transfer sequence.

"Wish me luck, you two," she said. "I'll try to contact you if I can, if I need any more help on the outside."

"Transfer countdown initiated," said a computerized voice. A one minute timer started to count down.

Sheena walked into the chamber, and closed the door.

Hang on, Sam, Yumi… she thought. I'm coming…

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DESTINY HERO DIVINEGUY (Monster Card)

Card Specs

Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Dark
Level: 4
ATK: 1,600
DEF: 1,400

Card Description: This card cannot be Special Summoned. When this card attacks, you can destroy one Equip Spell on your opponent's side of the field. If you use this effect, inflict 500 points of direct damage to the controller of the destroyed Equip Spell.

Note: This card is referred to as "Destiny Hero Celestial" in the dub.

0

0

0

DESTINY HERO DARK ANGEL (Monster Card)

Card Specs

Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Dark
Level: 1
ATK: 0
DEF: 0

Card Description: Discard this card from your hand to the Graveyard. When this card is sent to the Graveyard in this manner, place it face-up on top of your opponent's deck. During the End Phase of the controller of this card, if the controller's opponent has a free space on his Monster Zone, this card is Special Summoned in Attack Position to the controller's opponent's side of the field.

Note: "Destiny Hero Dark Angel" and "Destiny Hero Divineguy" were first used by Aster in the "Yu-Gi-Oh GX" episode "Ultimate Destiny". Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.

0

0

0

DOCTOR-D (Spell Card)

Normal Spell

Image: A nutty mad scientist surrounded by smoking beakers and test tubes.

Card Description: Remove one "Destiny Hero" Monster in your Graveyard from play. Special Summon one "Destiny Hero" Monster from your Graveyard that is Level Four or less.

Note: "Doctor-D" was first used by Aster in the "Yu-Gi-Oh GX" episode "The Phoenix Has Landed (Part Two)". Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.

0

0

0

D-ACCELERATION (Spell Card)

Quickplay Spell

Image: A red letter D in a blur.

Card Description: Activate only during your Battle Phase. Select one "Destiny Hero" Monster that you control which is Equipped with at least one Equip Spell. Destroy all Equip Spells Equipped to the selected Monster. The selected Monster may attack an additional time during this Battle Phase with its ATK halved.

Note: "D-Acceleration" was first used by Aster in a fourth season episode of "Yu-Gi-Oh GX". Creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.

0

0

0

WHITE NIGHT DRAGON (Monster Card)

Card Specs

Type: Dragon/Effect
Attribute: Water
Level: 8
ATK: 3,000
DEF: 2,500

Card Description: Negate the activation of a Spell or Trap Card that targets this card and destroy it. If a Monster on your side of the field is designated as an attack target, you may change the attack target to this card by destroying one Spell or Trap Card that you control.

Note: "White Night Dragon" is a Japanese card that has not yet been released in the United States. It was based on the version used by Alexis in the "Yu-Gi-Oh GX" episode "Heart of Ice (Part Two)", which was more powerful.

0

0

0

BROKEN BLOCKER (Trap Card)

Normal Trap

Image: Big Shield Gardna, his shield being blasted apart by a beam of energy.

Card Description: You may activate this card when a Defense Position Monster you control, whose DEF is greater than its ATK, is destroyed as a result of battle. Special Summon two Monsters with the same name as the destroyed Monster from your deck in face-up Defense Position.

Note: "Broken Blocker" is a Japanese card that was released in "The Duelist Genesis", available for the TCG in August.

0

0

0

Coming up next:

As the remaining heroes rush to save Ren and Chelsea, Sheena picks up her Duel Disk again to make a foray into Xanadu. But she soon learns that getting in is harder when Daala doesn't want you to come in. It's time for Shelob the Spider Savant to strut her stuff once again, in a chapter I just had to call "Wrath of the Spider Queen", coming soon.

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Name that Card!

This card has the dubious honor of being the first card to have been on every part of the Restricted List – Unlimited, Semi-Limited, Limited, and Forbidden – at various parts of the List's history. Can you name it?